Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion: A Book Review

As has happened recently with books, a copy of The God Delusion was put in my hands. Thus I
ventured down Richard Dawkins’ road for the first time. Religious debates aside—they
are not the point of this post, and as Dawkins points out, these debates tend
to get heated fast—Dawkins makes a case against religion and the existence of
God. For some, as already noted, this idea is controversial and sacrilegious, something
that could place them in the depths of hell and brimstone, but for those with
an open mind, give this text a look.

Dawkins lays out a case, like it or love it, and in this
case he uses the biological perspective first, then he ventures into the
philosophical. The latter allows Dawkins to questions the inner workings of
both man, the universe, and God. He brings up physics, the creation of the
universe, questions omnipotence and fairness, and even digs into the annals of
human morality by bringing up study after study on the subject. Objectively
speaking, the data here is great, shocking at times, but interconnected in a
way that fits his case. Subjectively, some may be offended, but one need only
see the Duckbilled Platypus to see that God has a sense of humor (Kevin Smith
can be credited with that joke).

While many people will jump on the defensive from the get go
here, the point of this text is to ask questions. Give it a read, do not get
angry, and if you are not swayed, move on knowing that you now understand the
thoughts and logic of those that are. Either way, Dawkins is active on social
media, especially twitter, so you can engage him there.